The Tar Heels are continuing to fill out their official visit schedule for this summer and one of the team’s top defensive line targets added their name to that list on Saturday evening.
As first reported by Sam Spiegelman of Rivals, 2026 3✮ DL Dereon Albert has set five official visits, including one to Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels will get the first crack at him on the weekend of April 11th while Arkansas (June 6th), Tulane (June 12th), Tennessee (June 15th) and Mississippi State (June 20th) will all get their cracks in June.
Albert, the No. 672 overall prospect and No. 66 defensive lineman in the 2026 class according to 247Sports Composite Player Rankings, hails from Jackson Academy in Jackson, MS. In 2024, as a junior, he was named a first team all-state member after collecting 81 total tackles, 17.0 tackles for loss, 7.0 sacks, one interception, seven passes defensed and one fumble recovery. The year prior, as a sophomore, he finished with 69 total tackles, 20.5 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, two passes defensed and one fumble recovery. He burst onto the scene back in 2022 when he had 96 total tackles, 24.0 tackles for loss, 8.0 sacks and two forced fumbles.
The race for Albert is another one that feels pretty wide open heading into the official visits. In-state school Mississippi State appears to hold the slight advantage right now, but it feels like the Tar Heels have a fighting chance here, especially after they reportedly impressed him during his unofficial visit to Chapel Hill last weekend. Getting the first swing at him feels like it is a big opportunity that the Tar Heels have to take advantage of.
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